How important are the visual arts in our society? I feel strongly that the visual arts are of vast and incalculable importance. Of course I could be prejudiced. I am a visual art. -Kermit The Frog

Last week Bernadette and I had the honor of judging a photo contest for a local elementary school. We were very impressed with the entries. The images were to be judged on three things. 1) That the submitted image fit within the topic they were provided. 2) The creativity within the image. 3) The technical aspect of the image.

The technical part was the easiest to judge, of course. We are trained to notice those details when printing. However, the other two presented a lot more difficulty.

The topic the students were given was “The Magic of a Moment”. My mind automatically starts thinking of very complex scenarios. That is the angle I would take, because as adults we tend to complicate things, right? But, once those images were in front of me I was reminded that there is such beauty in the simplest of things! It isn’t necessary to have the most complex subject and the new trendy technique in order to create a beautiful image.

While being so thankful for the reminder to appreciate the simplest of things, such as a field of sunflowers or a writing spider hanging from its web, I was also appreciative that these students were given the opportunity to express their artistic side. So much emphasis is put on basic educational knowledge (reading, writing and arithmetic) that I think society sometimes forgets about the “right brained” people. Don’t get me wrong, I most certainly think that the basics are extremely important but I also know that not everyone excels in that area. And those that don’t deserve to be able to excel and take pride in the areas that speak most to them, like the arts!

So, all of that being said, f/32 is very proud to support adolescent art education and participation! We also proudly support simplistic beauty, so take a moment and take note (or photograph) the “magical moments” all around you!